


Any Other Way

by simpleandpure22



Series: Home is Where You Are [1]
Category: Football RPF
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-25
Updated: 2015-05-25
Packaged: 2018-04-01 04:46:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4006369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/simpleandpure22/pseuds/simpleandpure22
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Erik and Jonas can't agree on which one of them is the better cook. So, they decide to do a little cook-off.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Any Other Way

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ginterwonderland](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ginterwonderland/gifts).



> I promised the lovely Ginterwonderland to write a Durmann one shot for her birthday, and here it is. :D It's rather different from my previous (more angsty) works, but Hanna, I hope you'll like it anyway. <3

Erik looks over his shoulder when he hears Jonas mutter something under his breath. “What?” he asks. Jonas is standing in front of the opened fridge. When he looks back at Erik, there’s something that looks like distaste in his face.

“Why are you keeping black bananas?” Even Jonas’s voice is filled with distaste.

Shrugging lightly, Erik tells him, “They are for banana bread. Isn’t it obvious?”

The look Jonas shoots him is so funny that Erik can’t help but chuckle. “You’re using black, rotten bananas for banana bread?” Jonas asks.

“They are not rotten. It’s just the skin that is black, the inside is perfectly fine,” Erik explains patiently. “Trust me, I know.” Jonas may be better in cooking, but Erik is by far the better baker in the house. Since they moved in together a few months ago, the cooking arrangement is clear, based on what they’re good—okay more like, acceptable at.

Erik has to admit that Jonas is a pretty good cook—although sometimes Erik is not a big fan of his _experimental_ style of cooking. He has once added cinnamon in beef stew… Yeah, that explains all. But when he’s not experimenting, he can be fantastic. On the other hand, Erik is quite a terrific baker. He’s good at following recipes at the exact measurement, resulting in nice baked goods. Which is something Jonas doesn’t have the patience for.

After retrieving the water jug and filling his glass, Jonas closes the fridge door. He sits down by the other side of the kitchen table, resuming eating his cereal. Erik can’t help glancing at his boyfriend, studying his beautiful features. Living with Jonas has been great, a lot better than he initially thought it would be. At first Erik feared that it was too soon, since Jonas had just been back from the loan in Mainz and all. But nevertheless it feels like the right thing to do. He wants to make up for the time they weren’t together.

They clicked almost right away, from the time they first met. Jonas understands him, even when Erik says nothing, and the glint in his eyes is something Erik will never get tired of.

Of course, there are times where Jonas frustrates the hell out of him. Like, how he sometimes eating crisps or cookies in bed, leaving crumps all over, which is something that drives Erik crazy. He likes the bed neat and the bed sheets clean and crisp that it’s almost like an obsession, much to Jonas’s amusement. The brunet will sometimes mess the bed in purpose, only to tease Erik, and no matter how annoyed Erik at this, he can never be mad at Jonas for too long. Not when Jonas is grinning at him, before usually pulling him into a kiss. Erik’s pout will only last for literally two seconds before he kisses Jonas back.

Jonas’s music taste is another thing Erik is not so fond of. It’s no secret that Jonas likes listening to Helene Fischer. He often plays her CDs in their CD player, and after three songs in a row it’s getting really redundant for Erik, especially because _Schlager_ is not his favourite kind of music. He’s twenty years too young for that. So, he has to put up with that, also with Jonas singing “ _Fehlerfrei_ ” or “ _Atemlos durch die Nacht”_ over and over again. Well, Erik will never tell Jonas this, but he finds it actually quite cute, especially when Jonas attempts bits of the dance moves.

Noticing that Erik is watching him, Jonas glances at him and arches an eyebrow. “How do you know they are not rotten?”

God, are they still on the banana subject? “I just do, okay? I bake more stuff than you do, so I know better about things like this,” Erik says with a shrug.

Now Jonas is looking at him, putting his spoon back into the bowl. “Are you implying that I can’t bake as well as you?”

“I didn’t say that. But now that you mention it, yes, I think so,” Erik smiles at him sweetly. “Baking is not your strength. And it’s totally fine, because it’s harder than cooking, since you have to really follow the recipe thoroughly. If your measurement isn’t exact, things will easily go wrong.”

Jonas lets out a snort. “So, basically you were saying that since baking is harder then it means you can cook as well as I do, as long as you follow the recipe? And the same doesn’t apply to me and baking? Well, you’re wrong, babe, and I’ll prove you wrong.”

“What do you mean?” Erik asks.

“I’ll bake something. And you’ll cook something. Then later we’ll see who is better. Fairly, of course,” Jonas adds. “Do you dare?”

Erik looks at his boyfriend through slightly narrowed eyes. If he said no, Jonas wouldn’t stop using it against him anytime soon. Besides, it can’t be that hard, right? All he needs to do is follow the recipe. And he’s certain Jonas won’t manage to get all the measurement right; Erik knows him. After some consideration, Erik nods. “Fine.”

The smile on Jonas’s face is priceless.

~*~

Today is Sunday, where there is neither a match nor training, so they can stay at home enjoying the nice weather—or their little cook-off. Jonas chooses beef goulash for Erik to cook, and Erik has chosen banana bread for Jonas to bake. Yes, using the black bananas. Jonas’s face when he takes the bananas out of the fridge is so funny that Erik has to stop dicing the beef in small cubes and only continues when his laughter has stopped.

The goulash recipe is from Jonas’s mum, and some of the writings are a bit hard for Erik to read. Jonas, of course has no problem reading them, but he won’t help Erik at all. He says that no help is allowed today, that twat. Jonas hates losing, even to his own boyfriend. Okay, fine, but on the other hand, Erik won’t help him with the banana bread, either. So, good luck with that.

He has read the recipe and after putting the onions in the stew pot, he needs to wait until they are soft before adding the beef chunks. When the onions become translucent, Erik adds the beef chunks and then sautés them. Now the problem is that the recipe doesn’t say how long the beef needs to be sautéed. Erik is sure that Jonas knows, but he won’t tell him for sure. So, Erik just follows his instinct and let them in the pot until they are brown on both sides, since he doesn’t want to risk eating raw meat.

The amused expression on Jonas’s face when he glances at the pot makes Erik worry that he’s doing it wrong, but he can’t do anything about it now. He’s too busy with his cooking that he doesn’t pay attention to how Jonas is doing, but the brunet seems to be doing fine. There is some flour on his hair and cheek, but otherwise he still looks annoyingly composed.

“Fuck,” Erik uncharacteristically mutters under his breath, as his sauce doesn’t thicken, no matter how much he stirs it.

“Need help, Erik?” Jonas asks, with his suspiciously too sweet voice. “You can always admit that I’m right, you know. That cooking is not as easy as you thought.” He has put his bread batter inside the oven, so now he’s leaning on the counter, watching Erik’s every move.

Erik smiles back, despite smiling is the last thing he wants to do at the moment. Two can play this game. “No, I’m fine, Jonas. Thanks for asking, though,” he says. “I’ll leave it to cook. I’m going to check the laundry.” Jonas shrugs, so Erik puts the lid on the pot and walks out of the kitchen.

Only that he doesn’t go to the laundry room. Instead, he walks to the bathroom and closes the door. And then he takes his phone out of his pocket and begins to write.

_Mum, how do you thicken goulash sauce?_

He sends it to his mum and waits. She should reply soon, since at this time of day she’s normally watches some old soap opera rerun on ARD. Yes, this probably can be categorised as cheating, and Erik normally hates cheating, but he refuses to lose to Jonas at this.

When his mum hasn’t reply after five minutes, Erik considers sending another text, but then he jumps as his phone rings. He groans softly as he sees the name on the screen. _Really, mum?_ Can’t she just send a text? Erik picks up the phone before it rings for too long and Jonas may hear it, “Yes, mum?”

“Are you cooking goulash?” his mum asks.

“Yes, and it’s too watery. I have tried reducing the water, but it doesn’t help.”

“Have you tried adding corn starch?”

Erik hits his forehead with his palm, suddenly feeling very stupid. Of course, why didn’t he think of it? It’s like, cooking 101. Before Erik replies, he hears Jonas knock on the door. _Oh dear._ He puts the phone away from his ear.

“Erik, are you in there? Your sauce is bubbling away,” Jonas says in a muffled voice, although Erik can still hear him clearly. “I could actually sabotage you by not telling you. Don’t say I’m not a nice person.”

Erik is about to answer, but then his mum says again, “Erik? Are you listening? Use two or three tablespoons of corn starch, and then mix them with cold water.”

“Yes, mum, I hear you,” Erik hisses.

To make the matter worse, Jonas knocks the door again, harder this time. “Erik? What are you doing in there? Are you talking to someone?”

“Is that Jonas I hear?” his mum asks, making Erik want to pull his hair in frustration. God, he swears he’ll never cheat again. Never ever.

Before Erik says anything to either of them, the door opens and Jonas is standing there. Erik curses inwardly. He should have locked the bloody door. Jonas looks at him questioningly, and then to Erik’s horror, his mum speaks again, rather loudly; he’s sure they both can hear her clearly even though she’s not on loudspeaker. “Erik, are you still there?”

Jonas’s curious expression slowly turns into comprehension and Erik feels his face heat up. He puts the phone back on his ear and says, “Yes, mum, I’m here. I’ll... try the corn starch. Talk to you later,” trying not to look at Jonas’s face.

“Okay. Give Jonas my love, will you?” his mum says. Erik mumbles a yes and then ends the call. As soon as he lowers the phone from his ear, Jonas bursts out laughing.

“You cheated. I can’t believe it,” he says between the laughter. “You fucking cheated.” And before Erik can do anything, Jonas snatches the phone from Erik’s hand and sprints out of the bathroom.

Erik chases him. “Jonas! Give me my phone back,” he protests, but Jonas ignores him. Erik can hear his laughter from the kitchen. “Jonas, it’s not funny.”

When he enters the kitchen, he sees Jonas near the kitchen counter, and his phone lies on the table. Jonas still looks very amused. If the situation were different, Erik would take his time, watching the smile on Jonas’s beautiful face, but now is definitely not the time for that.

“The next time you talk to your mum tell her I send my love back,” Jonas teases, a laugh escapes his lips again. Despite feeling very embarrassed, Erik can’t help smiling; he has to bite his lip to keep himself from laughing. Well, yes, it is actually quite funny.

Erik mixes some corn starch with water and adds it to the pot, whilst stirring. Like magic, the sauce begins to thicken. When he puts the lid back on, Jonas lifts his hand and rubs something that looks like flour on Erik’s face, making Erik gasp in surprise. “Jonas, what the hell?”

“It’s what a cheater deserves,” Jonas says, with a chuckle, dipping his hand into the flour and pour some on Erik’s hair before Erik has time to dodge.

Okay, he asked for it. Erik reaches for the flour and throws it, aiming at Jonas’s hair. The kitchen is filled with laugher and curses as they both try to cover each other with flour. Soon, the used-to-be-clean kitchen transforms into a mess with flour on nearly every surface.

For once, Erik doesn’t mind. His heart is filled with so much love and warmth, for the feelings he has for the other boy. After his laughter stops, Jonas pulls Erik close and kisses him. Erik can taste flour on his boyfriend’s lips, but it doesn’t bother him in the slightest.

“Shower?” Jonas suggests, as they pull away.

“What about your bread?” Erik asks, glancing at the oven.

“It still needs forty to forty five minutes.”

Erik shrugs, trying to sound nonchalant, but his blushing cheeks give him away. “Fine.”

The shower takes a bit longer than expected because, well, Erik loses track of time, especially when he feels Jonas's hands on his body as Jonas helps him wash all the flour away, amongst other things... Anyway, when they’re dressed again and head back to the kitchen, Jonas’s bread has turned a bit darker than it should be.

“It doesn’t rise much,” Erik says as he peers at the bread after Jonas takes it out of the oven. He is torn; a part of him wants to laugh and taunt Jonas mercilessly, but the other part can’t help feeling sorry for him, for he has tried quite hard.

Jonas runs his hand over his damp hair. “I think I messed the baking powder ratio a little bit.”

“Well, tough luck,” Erik says. It confirms what he said about Jonas sucks at following a recipe.

“At least I didn’t cheat,” Jonas counters, with a chuckle.

Erik rolls his eyes, but then Jonas ruffles his hair and he smiles.

When it’s time for dinner, they both set the table and eat. Erik’s goulash tastes quite good, but the meat is rather tough. Jonas tells him that he shouldn’t brown the meat too much. So, that’s why he looked like he wanted to laugh earlier when Erik was sautéing the meat; he knew Erik was doing it wrong. _Twat_.

The texture of Jonas’s banana bread is not quite right; it’s dense and slightly tough, although to be fair, the taste is all right. “I’ll let you do all the baking then,” Jonas says, taking his glass and drink the water after tasting his bread.

“And I admit you’re better at cooking,” Erik replies. Their eyes meet and they both chuckle at the same time.

“You still cheated, though,” Jonas teases, making Erik pout. But then Jonas leans forward to kiss him, and Erik automatically kisses him back.

Well yes, living with Jonas can be annoying sometimes. But Erik wouldn’t want it any other way.

**Author's Note:**

> It is very very fluffy, indeed... Well, I hope you like it, and I'd love to hear what you think, and whether I should write something like this again :D


End file.
